Longview School science teacher lauded

DEERFIELD — Science teacher Emily Sherman of the Longview School was named a 2013 N.H. recipient of the Presidential Award for Excellence in Math and Science Teaching.

According to a release issued on behalf of the Longview, the award is the highest honor the federal government can bestow on a teacher specifically for math or science.

“It’s very exciting to win the award, one of the things that was mentioned last night at the award ceremony is that teachers don’t get noticed, and it is nice to be noticed, specifically because there are some tough days here. Students don’t necessarily give positive feedback on a regular basis, so it’s nice to be recognized and get that from somewhere,” Sherman said.

Sherman received her award in a ceremony honoring teachers from around the state held in Concord on Wednesday attended by Gov. Maggie Hassan.

Part of what makes her job so challenging yet rewarding, Sherman said, is that Longview is a school that specializes in taking students from all over Rockingham County with behavioral or emotional disabilities.

“All our students come from public high schools. The districts pay their tuition so they can come here. For many districts, once they have gone through all positive alternatives regarding a student, they send them here,” Sherman said.

With 17 current students and a maximum of 25, Sherman says she teaches all science classes in the school.

“We get a lot of students that are marginalized who don’t have a lot of credits and are looking to make up ground. A lot of our students have issues, such as anxiety, depression or anger, so the school offers individualized education plans. We have very small classes, no more than eight per class,” Sherman said.

Sherman, who moved to New Hampshire two years ago from Maine specifically to take the job in Deerfield, said she was nominated for the award by an old colleague from Maine. She added that the nomination process looks at the entirety of a teacher’s career, and not just her time in New Hampshire.

Sherman’s efforts since coming to Longview have not gone unnoticed by her co-workers.

“She came to us last year from a public school setting and the way she teaches matches exactly with what it is we are looking to do on our 154-acre campus. Emily has brought a new dimension into our school with the length and breadth of how she uses the environment as a teaching tool, from taking water samples from the Lamprey River to tracking animals after the first snow,” Longview Director Tom Jennings said.